On Saturday, we witnessed the unceremonious removal of a statue, a monument that most would acknowledge is a cultural defining element from a property that has municipal heritage designation, which requires Victoria city council approval to do so.
This property known as 1 Centennial Square, however, has also been formally recognized as a National Historic Place and holds a proud position in the Canadian Register of Historic Places, where more than local council approval is required to satisfy the need to remove a defining element.
The 300-page Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada addresses the importance of key elements such as the “modern ornamentation of a building’s exterior with publicly commissioned artwork” and stresses the need for preservation and protection of these structures.
It can be assumed that the existence of this registry, along with the standards for conservation, is an attempt to protect designated buildings and cultural defining elements from actions performed by self-appointed individuals and groups without due process.
Have we just witnessed the unauthorized removal of a cultural defining element from a protected Canadian heritage place?
“Character-defining element: the materials, forms, location, spatial configurations, uses and cultural associations or meanings that contribute to the heritage value of an historic place, which must be retained to preserve its heritage value,” the standards say.
If the answer is yes, then it should be put back in place. It doesn’t belong to the city. It belongs to all of us.
Tim Lindsay
Central Saanich
